Two weeks ago we sent the query below to Cllr Terence Buxton, Chair of the Major Planning Development Committee that approved the KALC planning application without bothering to refer it to the Mayor of London for his approval.

We copied our email to Jonathan Bore, Executive Director for Planning, and To Edward George, the senior planning officer who had handled the application on the Council’s behalf. To date we have received no reply.

Having appealed to the Mayor of London to call-in your planning decision on the KALC development, we received a response from Emma Williamson at the GLA advising us that RBKC should have referred the planning decision to the Mayor’s office but neglected to do.

The decision has now been belatedly referred to the Mayor and is awaiting his determination.

Meanwhile, Leadbitters contractors this week began ripping up the car-park and MUGA on the site with heavy machinery. Should they not hold back to await the Mayor’s decision on this, and if so who’s responsibility would it be to so order them?

Respectfully,

Grenfell Action Group

It’s interesting to note that Terence Buxton sits on the board of the Westway Development Trust which stands to make significant financial gains gains from the KALC project because the Westway Sports Centre will now be the chief provider of outdoor sports facilities in North Kensington. Indeed Westway has already been paid £75,000 by the Council to upgrade some of their facilities as so-called ‘re-provision’ of the well used MUGA at Lancaster Green.

The fact that the children of Lancaster West will never use these ‘re-provided’ facilities clearly matters little to RBKC councillors.

Buxton also has private interests in a property management company at Arundel Gardens W11 just a stone’s throw from the KALC site.

Unfortunately we were advised that the clear conflict of interest between these directorships and his position as Chair of the Council’s Major Planning Development Committee were insufficient grounds to require him to recuse himself from the KALC planning decision, even though he may well stand to gain financially, although indirectly, from the development.

What will it take to stop these pompous and arrogant toffs from riding roughshod over the rest of us, by exploiting every last loophole in a system designed to provide them with such loopholes?